Love Actually
by LoonyLoopyLupin96
Summary: James suspects Remus' friendship with Lily is much more, and he'll stop at nothing to ensure she at least gives him a chance. An argument between James and Remus leaves Remus almost deserted by his friends. How will things go when Sirius steps in to help? Wolfstar and Jily. Fifteen parts.
1. Chapter 1

**I've been getting an idea slowly, but not quite sure what to do with it. I went to bed last night with a vague plot idea, and woke up with a story ready to begin. So, I hope it goes alright.**

**Another thing: I'm not really sure who to put as the main characters of it. Remus and Lily, Remus and James, James and Lily or Remus and Sirius?**

**This is part one (of course) of fifteen, going off the plan I've developed. So yeah, enjoy, and please let me know what you think :)**

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"But why does the stirring affect the contents? I thought it was just like muggle cooking," Remus muttered, frowning as he re-read the page from the library's Potions text book.

Lily was sitting close beside him, studying the page intently; her brow furrowed in amusement as she listened to Remus' mumblings.

"Remus," she began, turning to gaze at him, "If you're looking for the answers to life, I think a Potions book is the wrong place to be."

The two of them laughed in unison, though Remus was still puzzling over it.

"But, what would happen if I were to stir one way wrong, just one tiny way – would the entire thing be ruined?" he asked her, eager to find out more about the one lesson he was truly awful at.

"Try it, and see," she asked him. For the most part, she was quite good at Potions. This was generally because she'd spent a great deal of her time in the company of Severus Snape – a fellow sixth year, though Slytherin. Both Lily and Severus had gone separate ways after the summer of the previous year, and though Severus had often claimed he missed her, his actions never really corresponded to his words, and so their friendship had evaporated.

Lily was substantially better at Potions than Remus was, but when it came to his philosophical questions, she never knew where to begin.

"I can't," Remus said after a brief moment, "I've sort of...erm...been stopped from doing anything with the potions after last time..." he turned away, a faint blush evident on his cheeks, somewhat embarrassed at his awfulness at the subject.

Lily growled slightly. Last time, in the lesson, one of Sirius and James' pranks had gone dreadfully wrong. The prank was made to look accidental, though, landing Remus the blame. Since then Professor Slughorn had been hesitant to allow Remus near any of the apparatus, and Remus was only too happy to oblige.

"If I get my hands on that Potter," she went on, glaring into space.

"Hey," Remus said, softly nudging her.

As emerald eyes met amber ones, the two melted into a sort of kind understanding.

Lily smiled at Remus, who returned the smile himself before turning back to the book.

"I guess I could try it, for you," Lily suggested.

Remus chuckled slightly, "What, and have both of us at the back on time out?" he joked.

Lily had begun shaking her head as soon as she realised what he was saying, "He likes me," she began, "I can be forgiven for such a ludicrous act."

Remus contemplated this carefully. Unlike James would have, Remus felt no jealously whatsoever in regards to Slughorn's favouritism of Lily and a couple of others. They excelled his class, and so they deserved it.

"It's okay; it's something I can just ponder myself for the next couple of lessons," Remus commended with no trace of bitterness. He liked puzzling over things – it kept his mind busy.

"If you're sure," Lily responded, studying him for any sign that he didn't mean it.

"It's okay," he repeated, withdrawing his half completed essay from his bag.

"Ah, I'll help you on this," Lily said, standing up and carrying their things to the nearest table. She returned to see Remus scanning the work he had done already on the essay, and it was clear that he didn't understand a word of it.

Lily held out a hand to help him up, but instead he placed the essay in her hand, and stood up unaided.

Nonplussed, she went back to the table and sat down, reading through his essay.

Remus sat in silence as he watched her quill scrawl along his mistakes, correcting them as she went.

He could only just appreciate how Sirius, James and Peter felt as they sat back to wait for him to check their essay; a longing for freedom of the difficult work they'd been faced with.

"There," Lily said after a short while, pushing the essay over to Remus.

He cast her a grateful look, before beginning to continue with the essay.

Slowly, Lily stood up to peer over Remus' shoulder. Oblivious, Remus continued to work – writing in extraordinary words, to cover up for the fact that he knew little about what it was he was actually writing about.

"It's four times clockwise, not twice anti-clockwise," Lily said softly, leaning around Remus to point to where his mistake was.

It took him a moment to realise that she was stood right behind him, and a cold shiver ran down his spine as he nodded and made to correct his error.

In the doorway, James Potter hissed. He liked to watch Lily studying; hell, he liked to watch Lily all the time. It wasn't rare for him to grow jealous of how close she was to other people. But as he knew 97% of them weren't really her type, he overlooked it. Now, however, with one of his best friends so close with her, his blood boiled.

The rational part of his mind told him that he was overreacting, and that Remus merely needed help on his Potions work. But when was that part of his mind ever listened to?

He needed something that would get her to leave the library.

Searching his pockets in a haste, as Lily bent around Remus to point out another mistake, James' fingers found something. Retracting it from his pocket he noted a stink bomb; one that he had hidden from Filch, the caretaker.

Without a second thought, James threw the stink bomb into the aisle beside the one Remus and Lily had earlier neglected, before he hid himself in the shadows, and waited for the effects to take place.

"Eurgh!" Lily gasped, taking in a mouthful of the vile stench roaming through the library, "I need to get out of here," she all but said before taking her things and leaving.

Remus was long since used to the smell of such, and so it took him a few moments longer to note what the problem was.

Slowly, he packed away his things and made his way out of the library in a different way to the one in which Lily had headed.

James' work there was done.

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**Next time: Remus heads back to the common room. What will arise when James also returns?**


	2. Chapter 2

As Lily went on her way to escape the ever increasing smell that was radiating from the library, she held her breath, clutching at her things; those which she had not yet packed away in her haste to escape the room. Remus continued on his way to the common room; his bag firmly grasping each shoulder, the way in which Sirius never failed to tease him about.

Casually, he bypassed the area in which James had crouched; in an alcove along the corridor, without looking in. He cast a brief glance over his shoulder to thank Lily, but saw that she had headed off at a great distance along the corridor, and so he turned to head back.

His thoughts bubbled with satisfaction in regards to the almost completed Potions essay, lying inside his bag at the present moment. He hadn't really spared a thought for Lily, other than gratitude for her patience in his somewhat distracted thirst for a knowledge he did not possess.

As Remus neared the common room, he slipped the straps of his bag off his shoulders, as he pronounced the password for the Fat Lady.

Once inside, his eyes scanned the crowded common room, for his friends. Peter was over by the window, his forehead creased as he overlooked his somewhat muddled Charms notes. Sirius was over by the fire, entertaining a large group of girls. And James was nowhere to be seen. More than likely stalking Lily, Remus mused as he sat himself down in a quieter corner of the room, withdrawing his essay from his bag as he began to read over it once more.

Sirius had noticed Remus' appearance, and had chuckled to himself as he noticed the way Remus' bag had once hung on both shoulders. With Sirius' chuckle, one of the gathered girls brushed their hand along his arm, in an unsubtle attempt to steal his attention once again.

The rest of the common room were either busy studying, or chatting animatedly about the things that had gone on during their day. Remus could, as a newly appointed prefect, issued any warning he may have wished, on the students as they neared his work station, but he refrained; they were doing no wrong.

The common room door was repeatedly open and closed as students left and entered, and so neither Remus, nor anyone else, felt obliged to look up as it opened once again.

It was only as the shadow loomed before him that Remus realised James had returned.

"Hey, Prongs," Sirius called, pushing a girl off his lap as he walked through them with a taunting smirk, to approach his two friends.

James showed no sign that he had heard Sirius' greeting, other than issuing a brief nod. His eyes remained fixed on Remus, before him, as friendly amber eyes slowly made their way to his own.

"What are you up to?" James asked Remus, genuinely interested.

"Just trying to finish this Potions essay," Remus answered, raising the parchment as though to single out which piece of work it was that he was referring to.

"I thought you were doing that with Evans in the library?" Sirius asked him as he perched himself on the arm of an armchair near a nodding Remus.

"I was," he clarified, "But she had to go, so I'm going to see if I can manage it alone," he went on, looking at Sirius before he turned his gaze to James, "She's was quite patient, I'm beginning to see what you see in her."

James' face went from a natural colour, to an almost Severus-like paleness, as his eyes bore into Remus'.

Sirius looked between each of his friends, barely noticing Peter's approach as he noted James' stance, and the dark glaze of his eyes.

"What's wrong, James?" Sirius asked him, confused.

Remus' face implied that he was barely a moment from asking the same question, and so he observed quietly as he awaited James' response.

Seeing the lack of understanding in Remus' face, only seemed to anger James more.

"You know what," James said, almost glaring at Remus, who slowly began to gather his things to stand up.

"What's gone on?" an oblivious Peter asked; his expression mirrored by Sirius'.

"Know what?" Remus asked cautiously, over Peter. He could sense the apparent anger in the atmosphere; the tense way in which they all hovered around one another.

It appeared to take James a moment or two before he could collect his words, part his seemingly crisp and calculating lips, to address Remus.

"You and Lily," James spat, beginning to retreat from his friends.

Sirius' expression grew incredulous, though understanding as he looked at Remus, to see how it was he would respond.

"Huh?" Remus responded, having no idea what James was implying.

James exhaled sharply, turning back only slightly to address Remus; "You're together, and I want it to stop."

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**Next time: What will come of James' accusation?**

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**I'm aware this is quite short. It's in my attempt to keep it to the plan. The chapters will get longer quite soon, I'm sure. And the next update will probably be some time at the weekend, there's a couple of things that need to be considered first, in regards to each person's reaction, but I don't doubt the next chapter ought to be longer than this.**

**Quite an interesting response so far, and I hope to hear from you all again soon.**

**Thank you, HProo-bear, RhizaStendan and TechNomaNcer28 :)**

**Thank you also, Ocean455, and I must say I agree. It isn't a ship I have read much of, yet, but it'd be interesting to see more into, despite it not being particularly cannon. There's just something about the way the two are often portreyed, and David Thewlis' line of, "You mother was there for me at a time when no one else was. Not only was she a singularly gifted witch, she was also an uncommonly kind woman. She had a way of seeing the beauty in others, even, and perhaps most especially, when that person couldn't see it in themselves," sort of urged me to consider Remus/Lily a little more.**

**Thank you all, once again.**


	3. Chapter 3

It took Remus a moment longer than it ought to have done, to realise that James was serious. He successfully managed to quash the slight chuckle that would have escaped his lips in any other circumstances, upon hearing of James' conclusion.

"What?! You and Lily, you never told me, Moony!" Sirius accosted.

Remus had begun shaking his head almost immediately, as he calmly addressed James in an almost exasperated tone, "You've got it all wrong, mate."

"Don't 'mate' me, Remus. I've seen you."

"Seen us what, James? Getting together in the back of the library?"

Remus' amusement was subsiding as he realised the extent to which James believed in his misguided vision.

"You haven't...?" Sirius asked, blatantly surprised at what he thought to be Remus' actions.

"Of course I haven't," Remus corrected, shaking his head as he cast a look at Sirius, willing him to believe.

Sirius let out a relieved noise, "So, what's this about, Prongs?"

But no one paid Sirius any more attention.

"I saw you today," James spat, almost sounding quite deranged, "You were-"

"We were what?" Remus asked him, in outright disbelief.

"Together," James finished, glaring across at his friend.

"James, we study together; nothing more," Remus answered him, then for the benefit of James he added, "I wouldn't want to date Lily. With no offence to her, of course. When have I ever stopped you from going along with the next absurd prank, in an attempt to catch her affections? Surely I would have done if this was the case."

Remus' words, without a doubt, made sense. And Sirius, his amusement also beginning to fade, didn't waste time in pointing this out.

"He has a point, Prongs," he said, glancing warily at his friend.

"No, because he's Remus. Subtlety has always been his middle name," James announced, incapable of letting both Sirius and Remus' words register for even the slightest of moments.

"James, this is getting ridiculous..." Remus said, quieter now in his attempt to get James to see it from his point. The irony of his currently induced subtlety.

"And there's my point," James announced, not failing to notice Remus' new approach.

"James, mate, could you not just be getting too far ahead, here...?" Sirius asked him carefully.

Sirius had almost expected to be exiled, as Remus more or less was upon referring to James as his 'mate,' but instead, James just shook his head.

"I haven't been spending every year trying to befriend Evans-"

"Oh, I was under the impression you had, Potter," Lily said from the portrait hole, before her eyes scanned the situation to try and understand what was going on.

James looked from Lily to Remus and back again, as the latter gave her a small, friendly nod; the awkwardness of the situation preventing him from doing anything more.

"Hey Evans," Sirius bellowed, grinning slightly as he did for any girl.

It was the fact that Sirius always did this, that stopped James from also turning on him. Remus then felt somewhat envious of the fact that it was he – he who had had only one girlfriend in his time at school – that was being berated.

Lily nodded, casting a subconsciously awkward nod, in response to Sirius' greeting.

"Have you managed to finish the essay, Remus?" she asked him, approaching the group of them as they stood together. It was clear there was tension and awkwardness in the air, and she had no doubts that she would get to the bottom of it when she could.

"Almost," Remus answered quietly, very much aware of everyone's eyes on the pair of them.

"I can check through your conclusion, if you'd like?" she offered him kindly.

Remus pondered briefly, before catching sight of James' expression and shaking his head.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Lils- Lily," he answered her, correcting himself the moment James had paled, upon hearing Lily's nickname. It was common knowledge that a great deal of the boys referred to her as 'Lils,' James included. But as he wasn't usually around to witness communication between Remus and Lily, it seemed like the knife through his heart had twisted.

"Alright," Lily muttered, abandoning pretence at her lack of knowledge, "What's gone on?"

Sharp green eyes bore into everyone in the perimeter, and rightfully, Peter found himself cowering slightly, under her gaze. James met her eyes with a fierce longing of his own, though there was a hint of betrayal within his iris. Sirius uncharacteristically found himself sitting quietly, waiting for someone else to talk as he picked at the arm of the chair, well aware of how ridiculous the situation was getting.

So, of course, it was up to Remus.

"I don't know how you can complain about me talking to her, James, and then pass up the open chance to do it yourself," he began, pretending not to notice how the fingers on James' left hand had carefully begun to curl into a fist.

"Sorry?" Lily said, spinning to look from James to Remus, "Who's complaining about what, here?"

There was spite and bitterness building within Remus – he put it down to the wolf within him, and the steadily approaching full moon – and so he paused, taking a deep breath before he addressed the bewildered red headed girl in their midst.

"So, James thinks we spend a lot of time together..." he began, looking solely at Lily, though still able to notice the look that James was casting him; urging him to go on, so he could be proved right.

"We do," Lily agreed, nodding through her confusion.

"And that we are..involved.."

Silence wrapped itself around the room, as Lily took Remus' words through her mind over and over.

"Is this true?" she turned on James. The words had sounded ridiculous to both Remus and Sirius, and yet James stood looking as though it had all been confirmed.

"You tell me," he answered her.

"Oh, I don't believe this..." she said, releasing a small snicker.

Sirius, as a neutral participant, could understand Lily's dismay fairly well.

Remus, also, had a reasonable imagination of it, after witnessing it often, when Lily was literally involved with another.

Lily, still stifling giggles, made to move out of their gathered circle, but James caught her arm.

Her laughter faltered as she looked back at James; the evident determination mingled with wide-eyed fury.

"Are you, or are you not currently dating Remus Lupin?!" he almost shouted.

At this, the entire common room fell silent.

"Let go of my arm," Lily said in a quiet, sharp voice as she fixed him with a look worthy of their head of House; Professor McGonagall.

"Answer my question, Lils," he almost pleaded; the first sign his own desperation had become evident.

"Let her go, James," Remus said carefully, aware of the uncomfortable way in which her wrist twisted slightly.

"Let me go," she repeated.

"Lily, please..."

"Let me go, or I'll hex you into next week," she said, somewhat darkly.

It was the times like these in which her time with Severus over the past years, was evident.

Sirius came up behind James, placing a careful hand against his friend's arm.

"James," he said sternly, all traces of humour vanished.

Feeling stung, James released Lily's arm, and casting him a final look, she left the common room and headed up to her dormitory.

Remus watched the departure silently, before thinking he ought to have clarified what Lily never got around to doing, "James, I-"

"Get the hell out of my sight," James said, angry eyes boring into gentle amber ones.

Sirius frowned, removing his hand from James, "James, there's no need for-"

"Do you want to go too, Sirius?"

Sirius fell silent, and did not answer as Remus picked up his things and made his way to the portrait hole.

"Remus, I'll see you later, right?" Sirius asked him, never forgetting that their friendship was not, nor should it be, affected by the matter at hand.

Remus nodded, issuing a brief, "Don't wait up," before exiting the common room and heading straight for the library.

Sirius cast James a rather stunned look, which was greeted with a fairly unpleasant, "Hunt down your pet, if you want to," from a shrugging James, "I'm going to bed."

A torn Sirius looked from the common room door, to the dormitory stairs, and settled for falling gracefully back into a chair.

The Marauders couldn't split up... He'd have to work to fix the situation.

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**Next time: A rather uncomfortable breakfast...**

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**I don't like having to scroll through a great deal of author's notes and replies to get to a story, hence the fact I'm keeping all this down here.**

**But yeah, I knew there had to be a reason I woke early at a weekend.. I also realise there's been no Wolfstar at all, yet, which kind of sucks because that was the point of it, for me. But for those interested in that area; I'll fit in a slight bit in the next chapter, the fifth is unlikely to have a great deal of it, but the sixth and seventh will, no doubts there. *eyes flash, knowingly***

**Thanks for your patience, though :)**

**I knew the last chapter was quite a...well, not particularly important to the story, and so...hence why this update is so soon. That, and I woke early. The next one could be up tomorrow, or later today. Not at all sure. Quite want to get to the better events.**

**Read and review, if you could - it'll get more exciting soon; getting a large number of ideas for future chapters, but hey; you can't reach the jam in a donut without biting through the dough :)**

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**Back to the point about reading between lines and such, Ocean455, I feel obliged to add the line, from the same film, "The dementors are amongst the foulest creatures to walk this earth." Looking over the fact that they don't walk, am I alone in thinking that he's talking about himself, there, in a self-degrading manner of believing himself to be a foul creature? Strangely, I do do other things, other than study and quote Harry Potter...If only rarely *grins* **


	4. Chapter 4

Breakfast the next morning was a rather sordid affair.

After returning very late in the night, to find Sirius asleep on the chair in the common room, Remus had summoned the strength to help his friend upstairs and to his bed. He proceeded to look across at James' curtains, which were drawn ever so tight, and decided it was safe for him to spend the night in the common room; he would awaken long before the others anyway, or so he thought.

The next morning, Remus found himself to awaken long after his usual time as he had been wandering the corridors on duty for the most part of the night, and was exceptionally tired. When he drew back his curtain he noted the both James' and Peter's beds were already vacated. Sirius and Peter were both lounging upon Sirius' bed, waiting James to exit the bathroom.

"Morning Moony," Peter whispered, with a terrified glance at the bathroom door.

Remus could only offer a sad smile in return as he realised what it had come to; his friends afraid to take a side, yet it seemed they had done.

This realisation caused Remus to clamber from his bed, and head across the room.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked him, his voice a casual level.

"Prefect bathroom," Remus responded quietly, anxiously assessing the bathroom door standing ominously before him.

"Are you going to breakfast with us?" Peter asked him, following Sirius' lead and speaking aloud.

"If you-"

Remus' words were cut off as the knob upon the bathroom door turned; notorious for its squeak, it was enough to stop anyone from talking.

James appeared in the doorway, and it was clear to Remus that James had had a very well-rested night. It was also clear that he had spent two minutes at the most to ensure his hair was as it usually was; a fact that Remus or Sirius would have noted was for Lily's benefit, if the circumstances were different.

So instead of pointing out James' appearance, Remus merely cast a glance back at his other friends, and said, "I'll see you in class."

Then he left, before anyone could contradict him, James throwing a disgusted look at him as he walked by.

Of everything, it was that look which Remus found to hurt the most, as he could not – for the life of him – decipher what it meant. He'd been sure to have seen it once the others had found out the nature of his condition, but he had been proved wrong. And now he was seeing it? Over a girl? The idea seemed absolutely ludicrous, and he wasted no time in muttering such as he made his way to the bathroom, much to the portraits' amusement.

Back in the dormitory, Sirius was assessing James.

"Still trying for Evans?" he asked, attempting to maintain some normality.

"I wouldn't give up on her just for a-"

"-Don't finish that sentence."

James fixed Sirius with a confused look, "I was only going to say... Oh."

As James considered what it was he had been about to say, he realised the complications from it, as Remus was not there to laugh it off with him.

"Can we go now?" Peter asked, completely oblivious to anything unfolding around him, "The sausages will be gone. You know what that Prewett girl's like."

"Don't let Arthur hear you say that," James answered, laughing as he opened the dormitory door once again.

Both Peter and James were laughing as they made their way down to breakfast, and though Sirius tried to join in, it didn't feel the same without his little friend beside him.

"Everything okay, Padfoot?" James asked as they neared the Hall.

"Sure," Sirius answered with a convincing grin. Though as he looked up to the opposite stairs, he saw Remus – fully dressed and ready – on his way to the Hall, pausing as he considered the best option, considering his friends' whereabouts. Sirius motioned for him to join them, with a sincere smile, as he continued on his way in.

"Morning, Evans," James said loudly as he settled himself down on the bench, not too far from her. Naturally, Peter took the seat beside James, as Sirius sat opposite; the empty seat beside him seeming to catch his eye at every moment.

Lily merely raised her eyebrows and nodded to his greeting, before turning and saying something back to her friend, Marlene, who laughed aloud.

It was then that Remus also entered the Hall, and cautiously made his way down the aisle. He was happy to have sat anywhere, but Sirius struck up conversation with him, for which he was grateful, and so he sat down beside him; opposite Peter.

"...the essay tomorrow, do you think?" Sirius was asking Remus, who was only half listening; the voices of the Slytherins were growing noticeably louder.

"Should have stuck with the Slytherin, Evans," calls a fifth year, seated at the centre of the Slytherin table, "Fewer horrible discoveries."

Remus turned to see the boy fixing him with a cold smirk. For a moment, Remus stiffened. Did the boy know about his condition?

Sensing his friend's distress, Sirius threw his arm around him in a friendly gesture. Remus jumped, slightly started, and cast a brief look at Lily – whom it seemed, was now sitting with no one to separate her and James - before issuing a fugitive glance across at James. Having noticed Remus' first look, James looked away in disgust.

"I'll have you know I like surprises," Lily responded, turning back to her seat. As she did so, James slid up the bench, and put a protective arm around her; a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Is that right, Lils?" he asked her.

With a sigh, she pushed his arm away and stood up. Once she'd stepped out of the bench, she bent slightly to be level with James' ear and added in a whisper, "Nice try, Potter." The smile she issued James with afterwards told him he wasn't being scolded, and so he reserved his victory dance for when she had left the hall.

"I need to go and do the conclusion on my Potions essay," she said aloud, "Coming Remus?"

Remus froze. He was quite aware of Lily's question, and of everyone's eyes on him as he considered: He wasn't making a move on her, so he shouldn't feel guilty if he said yes. But then, if he said no he would get to spend more time with Siri- Wait. Where had that thought come from? Remus frowned slightly. It would be easier for everyone if he just excused himself and studied alone. But of course, Sirius was having none of it.

"I'll bring him along later, when I've finished with him," Sirius called to her, as Remus appeared not to have the nerve to answer, "Relax Pete," he added, removing his arm from Remus so he could reach for some more bacon, "Just playing hard to get for her," he added with a wink.

James exhaled. He knew Sirius was joking, and he knew he ought to be glad that Remus had not gone with her. Additionally, she may have just flirted with him. But it still didn't stop James from feeling as though everyone in the school wanted Lily for their own. Including the Slytherins – it was outrageous.

Thinking of which, James looked over to the Slytherin table to find out which surprise it was they were talking of.

Across the room, they all sat huddled with books; smelling one every so often before pulling a face, and casting a spell before smelling it again. They had meant the library prank.

James barely spared a thought for how they knew it was him, as his eyes met Severus', as he sat looking across, not hiding his gaze.

The calmness in Severus' eyes faltered as he looked at James; 'James, who was surely going to get Lily,' Severus thought.

'Lily, whom I need to try harder for,' James thought.

"Come on," Sirius said, taking James away from his thoughts, "Classes to go to."

* * *

**Next time: James' next attempt to win over Lily, and Remus' bright idea.**

* * *

**I could put it down to everything that's happened this week, but; Is this story going somewhere? The plan looks promising, but I'm not entirely sure... It would truly help me out, to know where your thoughts currently lie, if you dropped a review. It's quite tough for me, working on impulse, rather than opinion. I just.. Yeah. Let me know what you think so far, and I'll be able to update sooner, then :)**

**Thank you for reading so far, I must add.**


	5. Chapter 5

"You got a T?!" Sirius all but shouted at James, despite the proximity in which they stood.

The two of them had entered the common room only moments earlier, and James had – uncharacteristically – struck up conversation in regards to an essay he had begun for Muggle Studies.

"It seems so," James answered him. Across the room, Remus glanced upwards to see what the commotion was about. It was evident, even from Remus' distance, that James' saddened look in regards to his low grade, was not a true reflection of his opinion on the matter.

Fooled, Sirius continued, "Why did you take that lesson anyway? It's not going to get you far, with the way the world's going..."

James sighed dramatically, "I've told you before," he began before his eyes scanned the crowd, "It's all for Lily."

Sirius found himself frowning, "You're studying muggles, and failing essays because you think that's the way to a _hard-working_, _witch_'s heart?"

The way in which he said it made the idea seem outright ridiculous, as Sirius had pointed out, Lily was neither a muggle, nor did she have much time for people who weren't trying in their lessons.

"Sirius... You don't get it. Don't you see my plan?" James went on, waving the essay in front of Sirius' face.

"All I see is you waving paper in front of my face, with a large 'T' written on the top," Sirius answered honestly.

Looking as though it took all of his self control, James stopped waving the paper in front of his friend, and ushered him into a nearby armchair. Remus was perched on a bean bag, not too far away meaning he could hear the entire conversation as he worked amidst a circle of books, summoning the will to complete his Potion essay.

"Right," James started, fidgeting almost as soon as he had taken his seat, "I study muggles, right?"

"Yes you do," Sirius confirmed, growing impatient. He briefly looked across at Remus whom he found to be watching the two of them, a calculating and understanding look on his face as he missed Sirius' gaze.

"And what's Lily?" James went on, as though that signalled the end of the conversation.

"A witch..." Sirius replied again.

Closing his eyes, much like Remus did in exasperation, James shook his head.

"What are you shaking your head for? Are you saying there are muggles at Hogwarts?" Sirius asked him.

"Don't be ridiculous," James chastened, "I'm saying that Lily is a muggle-born."

Sirius' impassive, blank look caused James to question his own idea.

"Well, I thought it was a good idea," he said, shrugging nonchalantly.

"I don't get it, what's her blood status got to do with you failing?" he asked.

"Everything!" James answered, "I can go to- Evans!"

James ignored Sirius' look of annoyance as he vacated his seat and bounced over to where Lily had just walked through the hole.

"Whatever it is, the answer's no," Lily said immediately, and Marlene laughed beside her.

"Did he get around to telling you?" Remus asked quietly as he approached Sirius in the arm chair.

"No," Sirius said, mockingly pulling a face and crossing his arms.

"I suspect you'll see," Remus responded, inviting himself to sit in the chair that James had been in, his own completed parchment lay upon his lap neatly.

"Hey, I thought prefects were supposed to be all saintly and helpful?" James mocked.

"Then go and ask Remus," Lily answered him smartly.

Ignoring this, James proceeded, "I got my Muggle Studies essay back."

Lily nodded, as though he were a five year old boy, telling her he had just found a pretty rock.

"I, uh..." he held out the parchment and paused as he eyes scanned the page.

The two of them were silent for a moment before Lily snickered, "You got a T?"

Putting back the ashamed facade, James nodded, "So, I was wondering..."

"Go on," she said expectantly.

"Will you be able to help me with it? Just...tell me what you know, and such?" he asked her. Sweat was building upon his brow as he looked across at her.

Eventually, a flicker of understanding flew across her face. James' expression was turning smug as Lily opened her lips to respond, until she said, "No."

James' jaw almost hit the floor.

"'No'?" he asked her after a moment.

"I'm not stupid Potter," she answered him, walking past him, "You're not using some failed essay to make a move on me."

James, it seemed, lacked the initiative to not look guilty.

"That's what I thought," she said, before leaving the scene and heading up to her dormitory with Marlene.

"Merlin, what do I need to do to get that girl..." James muttered as he made his way back to Sirius looking disgruntled.

Remus coughed self consciously as he made to get out of his seat, before Sirius' arm stopped him.

Shaking his head at Remus' questioning look, Sirius turned to James.

"Now I understand what you had in mind," he said, having the decency to look pitying towards his friend.

"Hmm," James shrugged, pointedly looking away from Remus.

"You could always just..work with her in class," Remus suggested quietly.

"What?" James answered somewhat harshly, before he could stop himself.

"Switch places with me in Charms tomorrow, show her you're not failing everything, be nice to her..." Remus suggested, growing more confident for each passing second that James' wand hadn't been drawn, or James' fist hadn't met Remus' face.

"Oh, does that work for you?" James asked him with a slightly irritated tone.

"There's nothing between Lily and I," Remus answered, pushing aside Sirius' arm as it had loosened, and getting out of his chair to face James straight on.

"Course not," James answered, pushing past Remus to sit back in the chair, dropping his Muggle Studies essay beside him.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Need to go and see Slughorn," Remus answered, partly turned towards Sirius as he raised his essay, "Finished his essay."

"I might see you down at the kitchen later," Sirius said, and Remus nodded before turning and leaving the common room.

When Sirius turned back, a smile of his own playing at his lips, he found James looking at him furiously.

"What?" Sirius asked, momentarily panicked.

"What about me?" James asked him.

"What about you?" Sirius replied.

"While you two are off on your moonlight rendezvous, what am I going to do?" James asked him, with a serious tone.

Noting the latter, Sirius stood up, "You're a git sometimes, you know that?"

This time, it was James' turn to panic.

"What?" he asked.

"First accusing Remus of dating Lily behind your back, now declaring to the world that I'm a bloody poof," Sirius said, his voice growing slightly louder as he addressed James, "He's my friend. This mess you've brought about is tearing me in two. I'm not choosing sides, Prongs. The whole affair is just childish."

"I didn't-" James tried, feebly.

"-So, in answer to your question," Sirius interrupted, "You can rethink Remus' idea, and watch as Lily actually looks past that big head of yours."

Sirius' last comment was tinged with a slightly joking manner, which noted James to the fact that Sirius wasn't outright angry, just marginally annoyed.

"Fine, fine," James said, waving Sirius away, though his words were still swimming through James' mind, "I'll see what I can do," he muttered as Sirius left the common room, with a wink at a fifth year girl as he passed by.

* * *

**Naturally, next chapter shall be purely Remus and Sirius. And perhaps a house elf or two. *grins* That may sound wrong, on several levels, but I can assure you where the house elves are concerned - all is innocent. Thank you for reading, and reviewing, too. By all means, proceed as we are going, very it's nice hearing from people. Next update will probably be next weekend, again, but as it is half term after that, I'd wager that updates for that week will be more frequent. Fanfiction writing is what I like to call 'English exam revision,' so I don't feel guilty.**

**No less, I'll see you shortly. Thank you for reading, don't hesitate to if you wish :)**

**I agree, TechNomaNcer28, the extent to which I don't particularly like him is probably OTT. I find myself trying hard not to portrey him as too horrible, but... And Peter, haha. I sort of feel sorry for him sometimes... (Forgive me)**

**And thank you nacho5 and XxXxXxILuvNicoDiAngeloxXxXxX **

**That's quite true, Ocean455, I guess I just liked to know who, if anyone, was actually reading it. It seems people are, so - on with the show :)**

**And guest, whoever you are (like a good mystery...) I guess you're right. Though I find the longer the story, the longer the AN are. I just don't like them getting in the way of the story - hiding them at the bottom works for me. Thank you, no less. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

"I didn't expect to see you so soon," Remus said, looking up after he had successfully managed to swallow a great amount of chocolate to see Sirius entering the kitchen.

Shrugging nonchalantly, Sirius hopped onto the stool beside Remus, "Prongs is plotting again."

Remus sighed, his amusement at the situation fading away along with the steam from the pans situated around the room.

"Hey, it'll be sorted soon," Sirius said encouragingly as he placed a hand upon Remus' shoulder, eyebrows raised as he waited for Remus to acknowledge his words.

Remus turned to look at Sirius' hand, studying it as he began eating a chocolate brownie, his face expressionless.

Turning his attention to the food before them, Sirius swiftly moved his hand from Remus without a second thought, before reaching over for a chocolate chip cookie, his eyes alight with hunger.

A smile played on Remus' lips as he watched Sirius devour the cookie; crumbs scattered across Sirius' lap as the cookie was being eaten. With the skills of a seeker, Remus reached out to catch a rather large piece of cookie falling from Sirius' hand.

"Eww," Remus cried as he realised the damp chunk had, in fact, fallen from Sirius' mouth.

Grinning, Sirius picked the piece from Remus and tossed it into his mouth.

"Sorry," Sirius said, not sounding sorry at all.

"You will be," Remus muttered, dragging the plate containing an assortment of confectionary, out of Sirius' reach.

"Hey!" Sirius called out, jumping off his stool to reach across for the plate, as Remus continued to push it further away with the tips of his fingers.

Faster than Remus had considered, Sirius resorted to snatching the piece of brownie remaining in Remus' hand, from him.

Remus looked scandalised as he turned back to Sirius who immediately jumped out of Remus' reach.

The wisest thing to do would have been to take another piece from the plate, but Remus was rather fond of the half-eaten food, and so he jumped down gracefully from his own stool to try and get his food back.

"Ye- Oh," Remus half-shouted as his fingers brushed against the food.

"Do you want it?" Sirius taunted.

"Yeah," Remus nodded warily.

"Then get on your knees."

Remus' smile faltered, "Excuse me?" he choked.

"And repeat after me," Sirius continued.

Frowning, Remus observed the tiled floor beneath them. Naturally, it was cleaner than any muggle flooring would be, but it was sure to be cold, and the appeal factor was less than zero.

"Oh, in that case..." Sirius said, making to put the brownie into his own mouth.

"No!" Remus cried, reaching out only to be restrained by Sirius.

"On your knees," Sirius commanded.

Lost, Remus sighed dramatically before bending down on one knee.

Raising an eyebrow, Sirius assessed his friend, "You only want to marry me because I've got your brownie."

Rolling his eyes, Remus continued onto both knees, looking up at Sirius, "Go on, then."

"Repeat after me," Sirius began, "Sirius Black."

Remus cleared his throat before muttering, "Sirius Black."

"No, no," Sirius shook his head, "That's not the way it works. This is a proclamation, act as though you're announcing it to the world."

"Sirius Black," Remus said, loud enough that a number of house elves in the vicinity jumped, startled, and turned to look at the two of them.

"Is truly amazing," Sirius continued.

"Is truly amazing," Remus repeated, rolling his eyes.

"And deserves the brownie more than I do," Sirius raised the brownie in the air clearly, at this point.

With a nod, Remus repeated, "And deserves the brownie more than I do."

Sirius paused, upon his friend's nod. It was, of course, common knowledge that Remus lacked a great deal of confidence away from his friends, and so Sirius wished he had reconsidered his words before having Remus say them.

During the comfortable silence that followed, Remus found himself sitting back on his legs into a more comfortable position. Sirius, poised before him, was looking off into the kitchen behind them as he thought of the next line that could follow.

After a couple of minutes, Remus realised he was still sat upon the floor. He glanced up at Sirius and was unsurprised to see that Sirius' eyes were still focused elsewhere.

Amused, Remus' eyes also trailed away. He realised that, as he was so used to seeing Sirius, the outfit he was wearing had gone unnoticed. But, as Remus sat upon the floor he noted how good the checked shirt his friend was wearing, fit his figure greatly. He was definitely competition for any male muggle model, Remus noted.

The trousers, too; slim fitting and the perfect length, much unlike Remus' own clothing. They hugged Sirius' legs brilliantly, enhancing each natural curve.

Remus' eyes remained focused on the forefront of Sirius' trousers, where the tips of his shirt brushed against his zip in the low lying breeze, until a clatter of pans somewhere in the room startled him into realising what he was actually doing.

Self consciously, Remus glanced up again at his friend, shuffling back slightly to ensure he wasn't tempted to observe his friend again.

Tempted... The word played around in Remus' mind for a moment. Was he tempted? Wasn't it reasonable for a teenage boy to be interested in comparing himself with his friends? Was that what he was doing?

'No,' a small voice in the back of his mind answered. It seemed to take a greater deal of effort than it ought to have done for Remus to stop looking at his friend, and so, with a self conscious cough, Remus made to stand back up.

"Is that it?" he asked, bringing Sirius away from his own thoughts.

"Not likely. Y-"

Sirius' words were drowned out as his stomach growled.

"I'll take that as a yes, then," Remus answered instead, standing upright and brushing off his knees.

With a nod, Sirius made his way back to his seat, leaving the brownie to sit on Remus' seat for only a few seconds before Remus had picked it up and tossed it into his mouth.

Chewing thankfully, Remus leaned over and pulled the plate back to them, pushing it over to Sirius.

Eyes on the plate, Sirius ran his tongue across his lips as he contemplated the plate before him. His finger was drawing circles in the air as he tried to come to a conclusion about which delicacy he should try next.

Remus, swallowing the remains of his brownie, found himself studying Sirius again. He began to notice other things about Sirius that he hadn't noticed before; the standard length of his nails, and yet Remus had never once seen him pick up any clipper; the way his knuckle cracked slightly as his finger was twisted around into yet another circle as he surveyed the options; the way his tongue brushed his lip slowly, as he tried to make a decision.

Remus' eyes remained rooted to Sirius' lips. How hadn't he noticed how puffy and cheerful they looked? Could lips look cheerful? Supposing it would depend upon the owner's eyes, too, Remus looked up to Sirius' eyes and was surprised to find himself being watched.

The two sat looking at one another; Remus now wondering what he was playing at, looking at his friend as he had been doing.

Embarrassed, Remus motioned to the plate and asked, "Will you be having that cookie?"

For a short moment it looked as though Sirius was about to say something else, but instead he shook his head, "I think I'll try the brownie you were so eager to get back."

Grinning, Sirius picked up the brownie, turning it over and over in his fingertips as he surveyed it.

"It's really nice. We'll have to try and incorporate it into our cake this year," Remus said, breaking off a tidy piece of chocolate chip cookie.

The Marauders usually designed some sort of New Year cake for the Gryffindor common room party. It consisted of four standard size tiers, and tended to involve some ingredient that wasn't meant for human consumption. This was generally Sirius' idea; it gave him something more to eat as Padfoot.

Any cake that remained was handed to their Head of House, who shared it amongst the staff. James' quarter was usually given additional icing before it was transported, commonly containing some form of itching powder or something, which left the staff in dismay, and himself in detention.

Remus' piece was the easiest to identify; chocolate.

Sirius nodded in slight agreement, before taking a large bite out of the brownie to see if he truly thought the idea was a good one.

Remus chewed silently on the cookie, pleased it was fresh and crunchy, not unlike the ones that were lucky to be left on the table in the Great Hall, if Peter hadn't eaten them.

"Brilliant!" Sirius said, half swallowing his piece as he offered his opinion.

Smiling widely, Remus swallowed, "Will you be including dog food again?"

"How did you guess?" Sirius asked, frowning.

"Padfoot," Remus answered, rolling his eyes, "You do it every year."

"Are you calling me predictable?" Sirius went on in his most challenging voice.

"I guess I am," Remus answered, wondering what Sirius' additional line would be.

Picking out a chocolate chip from the brownie, Sirius toyed with it for a moment before looking up at Remus through his eyelashes.

"I'd believe that if you knew every slight thing there was to know about me," Sirius said, before tossing the chip into his mouth.

"I do," Remus answered, before dropping his cookie on the side as Sirius seemed to be choking.

As Remus tried to recall the Heimlich manoeuvre, Sirius gained control as he looked back at Remus through rather watery eyes.

"You wouldn't be sitting here if you did," Sirius disagreed after a moment.

Rather than answering, Remus looked back at Sirius, "You're sitting here knowing I turn into a full grown werewolf each month."

"It's different," Sirius disagreed, setting down the brownie and eyeing it warily.

"How is it d-"

"Come on," Sirius interrupted, jumping down from his stool, "Almost curfew time."

The two of them vacated their places, Remus more hesitantly.

"You never care about curfew time," he pointed out, following Sirius to the door and almost bumping into him as he turned back to respond in a rather cheeky manner.

"See," Sirius said, "I can be unpredictable."

* * *

**Next time: With James still not talking to Remus, Remus takes his studying to the library. Strangely, he's soon accompanied by three people who seldom step foot in there.**

* * *

**This was originally going to be about 800 words, uploaded on Friday. Instead, I left it - unsatisfied with it - and came back to it. That was the result. I must say, it was a great improvement on what it was initially going to be.**

**I hope it was worth the couple of days late/out of sync.**

**Please let me know :)**

**And thank you to everyone reading, favouriting and reviewing so far.**


	7. Chapter 7

The next day, time for class came around all too soon for the Marauders, and they headed off to their Charms class; an awkward silence in their midst.

Sirius had outright told James what he thought of the present situation, and so he went on to say that Remus would accompany them on their way to class as he always did.

"Whoa, what'd you stop for?" Peter called out, narrowly missing walking into Remus.

Both Sirius and James, with a sigh, turned to look at the others. Remus stood there looking a little paler than he had done moments ago.

"What hurts, Remus?" Sirius asked in a tone similar to that of a concerned mother.

Remus shook his head, motioning for the others to go on as he too attempted to do the same.

"Hey," Sirius said, having not moved from his stationary position and proceeding to reach out for his friend's arm.

Remus shivered slightly as yet another wave of sickness flew over him, before he turned back to Sirius, "Could you tell Flitwick I'll be there soon?"

Still looking concerned, Sirius nodded, "Do you want me to come with you?" he asked, but Remus had already more or less headed off in another direction.

"What's the problem?" Peter asked.

As he stared into the space where Remus had recently been posted, Sirius shrugged before answering distantly, "I don't know."

"Well," James interrupted with a nervous laugh, "I guess it gives me chance to try out his idea."

Disbelieving, Sirius turned to James, "Are you really such a heartle-"

"Hey, hey!" James interrupted again, raising his hands, "I was joking," he said, before adding, "Sort of."

Ignoring this, and his mind full of concern for Remus, Sirius continued on his way to class as the others soon followed.

* * *

"Ugh."

Lily exhaled sharply as she noted Remus' lack of presence when his friends entered the room. It was too obvious what would happen next.

Sure enough, James unsubtly sat himself down beside her, in the vacated seat.

"What've you done to him?" she asked, barely moving her lips as she kept her eyes glued to Professor Flitwick, perched on a number of books at the front of the class.

"Huh?" James asked in surprise, widening his eyes as he looked around for Severus – thinking it to be he whom she referred to.

"Remus," she clarified.

"Oh," James briefly answered with a shrug.

The two fell silent whilst their teacher proceeded to begin their lesson; Lily, ultimately waiting for a proper response, and James; trying to think of something normal to say.

"So, where is he?" she asked eventually.

"I don't know," James answered honestly. His tone, a little sharper than he would have liked it to have been; he wanted to talk about himself, not Remus.

"Well is he skipping class, is he avoiding me, is he-"

"He wouldn't be avoiding you," James said, not failing to notice how Lily seemed quite happy by this, "No, he wouldn't do that. He's too 'proper' to do that."

"Is that a bad thing?" she asked before raising an eyebrow; an act she had done self consciously but immediately regretted as James practically swooned before her eyes.

"Apparently not," James answered eventually.

"So, where is he?" Lily repeated, turning to look back at their teacher once again.

"Ill, I think," he answered before considering Remus' words about treating her normally, being nice and adding, "You're better asking Padfoot for the details."

Lily failed to hide her surprise by the fact that James was actually being nice about Remus, and forgot to remind herself not to raise her eyebrow again.

Surprised emerald eyes looked back at James, and he stared back into them; hypnotised by them.

"...wouldn't you agree, Mr Potter?"

Heads turned in James' direction as he looked at Professor Flitwick, "Sir?"

"Perhaps it would be better if you paid attention," Flitwick answered, "You too, Miss Evans."

"Sorry, Professor," James answered almost instantly, maintaining his attempt to be polite for the hour.

In his own surprise, Flitwick failed to deduct points off Gryffindor house.

"He's always so ill, isn't he?" Lily muttered.

"Flitwick? What do you mean?" James whispered to her.

"No," she shook her head; strands of red hair falling over her shoulders, "Remus."

Guilty, James nodded.

"You'd have thought that would have made you nicer towards him," she concluded.

Before James could even think, he said, "I planned to be; if all went well with you this lesson, I'd have something to thank him for and it would be a good way for me to apologise to him, too."

Lily turned back to James, sighing in moderate amusement, "Low, James." She began laughing slightly, though, so James knew he was still in her good books.

* * *

"Hey," Sirius whispered, nudging his foot against Remus'.

Remus was half sat, half led down against some shelves in the library; a Charms book open on his lap, with his eyes shut tight, fast asleep.

With no response from Remus, Sirius nudged his friend once again, "Remus?"

Remus whimpered slightly, manoeuvring beside the shelf.

_An ecstasy of fumbling hands; cold fingers running up the back of his shirt. A gasp of hot breath ghosted across his ear lobe._

_His own name, whispered like a prayer on the lips of the other boy._

'_Remus.'_

_The sound of a zip, masked by the harsher whimpering of the two. The friction between thighs, growing too much to bear._

_His hands found their way down the other's chest; his gasp a prize for how well it was going._

_Sirius' hands left Remus' trousers, reaching instead for his shoulders._

_Skin was scratched in the haste of the inexperienced duo._

"_Remus."_

_The warm hands clasped around the bare shoulders of the boy, amber eyes were shielded with flickering lids, looked on by the silvery eyes as lips met. Backs were bruised against the shelves behind them._

'_I need to-'_

"_Remus."_

'_Sirius, I'm-'_

"Remus!"

Remus sat upright, eyes wide in surprise. Sirius' hands were still against his shoulders; prompting him to awaken.

Amber eyes met silvery orbs, and Remus had to look away.

"Are you okay?" Sirius asked in a somewhat shaky voice.

Instead of answering, Remus looked up and around them. They were in the far corner of the library. 'Decently,' a tiny part of his mind noted.

"Rem?" Sirius asked quietly.

"I'm fine, just...fell asleep."

Sirius didn't miss the sharp crimson colouring overtake Remus' cheeks as he pointed this out.

"Was it a bad dream?" Sirius prompted.

"No!" Remus answered immediately, casting his mind back, "You were great."

"Huh?"

"**It **was great."

Somewhat confused, Sirius decided it was best to save the inquisition until later on. After all, Remus had fallen asleep and had been here for the most part of the day – he was more than likely confused himself.

"Have you been here for ages?" Sirius asked.

Remus merely shrugged, "I can't remember. I went to Madame Pomfrey – that was over quite quick, but I'd missed most of Charms so I came here to catch up."

"Oh, I s-"

"Did James get far with Lily?" Remus interrupted.

Sirius 'tsk'ed, before nodding.

"I suspect you'll hear all about it sooner or later."

Remus chuckled slightly, forcing himself to think of James and Lily; anything to take his mind off his dream.

The duo were silent for a moment, and it wasn't until Sirius asked, did Remus realise he had been humming.

"What song's that?" Sirius asked as he closed Remus' Charms book.

"Huh?" Remus asked.

"'Mm, mm, mmmm. Mmm, m-m-mm-mm,'" Sirius mimicked.

"And I'm losing control..." Remus added, grinning as he positioned himself better against the shelves, "It's from a muggle musical film."

"What's it called?" Sirius asked.

"The film is 'Grease,'" Remus answered him before waiting for the flash of recognition on Sirius' face that was going to come.

Sure enough, Sirius jumped up on his feet and – in a perfect imitation of James' voice – continued.

"I got chills... They're multiplying," his hands spread out wide, as though to emphasise his point, "And I'm losing control, 'cause the power you're supplying is **erect**ifying."

Laughing outright, Remus answered, "I'm pretty sure those aren't the words."

Ignoring this, a happy Sirius went on to make Remus laugh some more.

In a fairly good imitation of Lily's voice, Sirius continued, "You better shape up, I don't want a stag, but my heart is set on you!"

It became clear to Remus that Sirius had no idea of the lyrics, and the two of them were soon lying side by side, laughing outrageously.

Unnoticed by either of them, a grinning James stood leaning against the end of the aisle.

He coughed, startling Remus into submission.

"When you two've quit flirting..." James began, issuing a cautious glance at Sirius and missing a shot of crimson rush across Remus' cheeks again.

Sirius raised an eyebrow to James, before looking back at Remus with a knowing smirk.

"Anyway," James went on with a self conscious cough, "Could I speak to you alone for a minute or two, Remus?"

Remus nodded almost immediately, though he wasn't excited about leaving Sirius' side – he did want to get over the simple feud with James.

Sirius faked a look of hurt, though his eyes conveyed a warning message to James as he stood upright, straightening his clothes as he did so.

"We'll see you in the common room later, Sirius," James called as Sirius retreated.

Sirius merely nodded as he left, singing aloud, "We go together..."

Remus hummed the rest of the song as James sat down beside him.

"I don't quite know where to start," James began, oblivious to the music around him.

"Take your time," Remus suggested.

James nodded, "Well, it sort of began after we left you for Charms..."

* * *

**Next time: Will James and Remus make amends, and what will happen next in the Sirius, Remus, Lily and James 'circle'.**

* * *

**That was probably the closest I've ever been to writing something worthy of an 'M' rating. But. It'd be interesting to find out what you thought of that, I suppose? Please let me know :)**

**Sorry for missing a week - whole heartedly blame the school work and equally uninteresting things outside of school of the week. I'll be sure to update next weekend at the latest.**

**Thanks to you all for sticking around, and reviewing et cetera, too :)**

**A belated 'Happy Halloween' to you all. (It's a Marauder era story, as such Halloween can be issued as a good thing at the end. I'm sure you get what I mean there...)**

**Thank you all once again!**


	8. Chapter 8

"You managed to stay polite for a whole hour?" Remus raised his eyebrows in mock astonishment.

James stopped walking, pausing to land a swift punch to Remus' arm. Grinning in response, Remus responded, "See, you're just not that kind of person."

Letting it go, James proceeded to walk down along the Charms corridor with Remus, as they made their way back to the common room. The corridors were dark and eerie, as silence consumed them. Occasionally, the clatter of the trophy cupboard would have James looking back over his shoulder – longing to be out there pranking.

The conversation with the two of them had gone on for well over an hour and a half, before Remus noted casually that they had to be getting back before curfew. Their friendship had soon rekindled, with a number of awkward apologies on James' part, and a long case of trying to stay focused and awake on Remus' part. They'd pretty much finished their conversation involving one another, in which James had swiftly gone on to talk about Lily and the events of their Charms lesson – a conversation that had led them to walk down the Charms corridor itself, despite it adding extra time to their journey, so Remus was able to go and their Charms teacher was available to speak to in regards to catching up the work he had missed earlier in the day – he wasn't, meaning that Remus made himself a mental note to go and do so as soon as possible the very next day.

As the two of them neared the common room, James' eyes alight with mischief, Remus slowed down to allow James in front of him.

After issuing the password, 'Cor leonis,' the portrait swung open wide, allowing James to immediately enter the room, leaving Remus behind.

Upon James' entry, Remus instantly picked up on someone yelling forcefully, "Where's Remus? What happened?"

The care radiating from Sirius did wonderful things to Remus' insides, as he stepped for wards into the common room, the light of the fire blinding him momentarily.

"Relax, Sirius," Remus said, smiling over at his friend.

"What happened?" Sirius asked once again.

James and Remus looked at one another, neither of them really wishing to go into it all again – not that night, at least. James, particularly, had better things in mind.

"We can fill you in tomorrow, Padfoot," James said offhandedly, making his way up the stairs to their dormitory in a haste, before appearing again not a moment later with a bottle of Ogden's finest Firewhiskey. "Besides," he went on, "We have this."

Swinging the bottle around, James jumped the last couple of steps, the bottle remaining firmly in his grasp.

"You know, as you're getting older I'd have thought this sort of thing would be beneath you," a voice said, emerging from the girls' dormitory.

"Beneath me? I doubt that would happen, though talking of which-"

"In your dreams, Pot- Oh, Remus, you're back," Lily said, catching sight of him beside Sirius, "Has this on grown up in the past few hours?"

"Well, I wouldn't go **that** far," Remus replied jokingly, before ducking to avoid James' fist once again.

"So, when's the party starting?" Sirius asked, ushering some first and second years up to their dormitories.

Pop!

James shook the bottle in answer, releasing the cork which soon flew through the air, issuing a neat display of indoor fireworks as it did so.

"They don't call it 'Firewhiskey' for nothing, then?" Lily asked.

"Of course they do," Sirius replied, rolling his eyes, "That was just a charm James and-"

Before Sirius could explain his involvement, James had interrupted with a cough, "Yeah, it was a charm I managed to incorporate into it."

Shrugging like it was no big deal James proceeded to summon a number of glasses and pour out some of the drink, watching Lily's somewhat proud and amazed response in his periphery.

Taking a small glass, Remus sat down on the loveseat beside the table. Almost a second later, Sirius had bounded upon to the chair, and flopped down beside him.

"Very subtle," Remus muttered, though Sirius pretended not to hear him.

* * *

The four of them were soon joined by an exhausted looking Peter, who grabbed a glass – egged on by James and Sirius' chanting – and downed it in one, before falling into a chair, and asking, "Where d-did y' get't?;" The drink making his speech barely decipherable.

"From our dear Prongsy," Sirius answered, louder than usual but otherwise fine. He had somehow moved himself to lie down on the chair, legs outstretched over the arm of the chair, whilst his head lay uninvited in Remus' lap.

Raising his friends' untouched glass, Sirius raised his eyes to Remus' face, "Have a drink?" he asked, raising it to Remus' lips; the only sign of his own drinking habits were the slight tremble and unfocused hand that raised the glass.

As the drink ended up knocking his nose, and almost tipping over, Remus wound his fingers around the cold glass, and placed it back upon the table.

"Not yet," he said, shaking his head.

"Remus, you've been saying that for the past hour. The bottle's nearly gone," Sirius pointed out – his attempt to be stern, failing as he paused to glare at his own newly refilled drink, slipping out over the edge and down his hand.

"S'a good job Prongs knows now," Peter slurred, half asleep in the chair opposite the two of them, though his eyes remained glued to Lily being easily 'forced' into a dance with James.

"It's electrifying, eh, Moony?" Sirius said after assessing the couple's dance for a few minutes, before looking up at Remus with a grin.

"It certainly is," Remus whispered.

Having not heard him, Sirius went to put his hand on the chair to sit up, but ended up running his hand down Remus' thigh, and pushing himself up that way instead.

Grunting at the impact, Remus waited for Sirius to move. He was therefore surprised when Sirius gave up his attempt to move, and sat upon Remus' lap instead.

"Isn't it, Moony?" he asked again.

With the full force of Sirius' weight upon him, Remus attempted to appear unphased, and instead continued to watch James and Lily in motion before them.

Throwing his arm around Remus, Sirius picked up another glass from the table behind them and all but forced it to Remus' lips.

If he had wanted to, he could have knocked the glass away. Instead, Remus settled for taking a rather large gulp of the drink before he took it from Sirius again.

"Right, right," Remus said, swallowing the drink, "I've had some now. You can give over bugging me."

Feigning another look of hurt – a look which Remus could not miss in his periphery – Sirius said, "I'm not bugging you, really. You love me, Moony."

Remus merely shrugged, correctly assuming that his friend was drunk, and thought nothing of it.

"And I love you," Sirius' drunken chant went on, "And Wormtail, even if he is a lightweight, and Prongs, even if he's blinded by love ninety-nine percent of the time. And you," Sirius concluded, "Even if you're legs are uncomfortable bony."

With no warning, Sirius shuffled over on Remus again, his hand upon Remus' shoulder for support as he moved closer to seek comfort.

It was then that Remus became aware that Sirius was practically asleep; eyes closed, Sirius sat rather rigid upon Remus, a loose hand still on his shoulder, slowly drooping down.

_Remain fixed on James and Lily,_ he told himself.

Sirius was falling deeper asleep upon Remus, his hand against his chest – not unlike in the dream.

_Forget that, watch them dancing. One, step, two..._

Remus shivered slightly as Sirius' hand came to a stop at his stomach, slightly bare where his shirt had been drawn up against the chair.

_See, it's fine._

"Whoa!" Sirius cried as Remus pushed him off the chair.

James and Lily paused only to look over and see Sirius – a great deal of Firewhiskey down his shirt – and Remus, almost running up the stairs to the dormitory.

"Too much drink for him," James muttered, before taking Lily back into his arms.

* * *

"I never thought you to be a liar, Rem," Sirius muttered from the doorway.

Startled, Remus turned over in his bed to look up at his friend, "Huh?"

With a knowing look, Sirius walked over and sat on the edge of Remus' bed.

"You're in love," Sirius began, smirking slightly as his friend turned beetroot red, despite the numerous words of denial escaping his lips. "With Lily," Sirius added.

It was then that Remus stopped his ramblings, and more or less instantly became his usual pale self again.

"Lily?" Remus asked – the name felt strange from his lips.

"Y-"

"You've got it all wrong," Remus said, shaking his head.

"That's not what you're...ugh...nether region seems to think," Sirius pointed out.

Remus instantly raised his hands from beneath his bed, much to Sirius' amusement.

"You were asleep," Remus accused.

"I thought you'd think that," Sirius shrugged.

"You've got it wrong," Remus repeated.

"Well, go on then. Talk," Sirius curiously demanded, finding a comfortable spot on Remus' bed as he waited for his friend to oblige.

He did.

* * *

**Next time: Where do Sirius' calculations leave him? What's Remus going to say?**

* * *

**As most of you will know, technology hasn't been on my side of recent. However, all said and done it should be alright from now, back into the swing of things.**

**I wish to thank you all for your patience again, and hope the rest of this goes as planned, and is worth the wait.**

**Thank you all! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**First off, I know what when chapters (or in this case, an author's note) are deleted and another is uploaded, you don't always get an Denali saying so. What I mean to say is that it may be a good idea to check if you've seen the previous chapter (replacing the note) before reading this.**

**And now, without further ado, on with the show! **

* * *

Chapter 9

"It isn't Lily," Remus repeated.

"But you are in love?" Sirius asked; a wide smirk across his features.

Remus exhaled. With an additional sigh, he forced himself out from beneath his duvet, into a sitting position.

Running a hand through his mangled hair, Remus found himself blaming the small amount of drink that he had consumed, for the messy situation he currently found himself in.

"It isn't what you think," he said after a short silence, in which he found Sirius studying him intently.

"And what do I think?" Sirius asked quizzically, raising an eyebrow.

Remus fixed his friend with his 'I'm not messing around' face, to which Sirius could only chuckle.

Without a response, Remus let his eyes wander across the drawn curtains of Peter's bed, opposite him.

"Come on Rem, it doesn't matter who it is," Sirius said kindly. As a result, Remus dragged his eyes away from the singed corner of the material, to Sirius' face.

Simultaneously, Remus almost yelled, "There is no 'who'!"

Sighing, Sirius continued, "Don't play that game with me, Rem. Just tell me the truth. You've trusted me with things of more importance than this, and I meant what I said about it not mattering who it was, in the grand scheme of things."

As the words gradually sunk in, Sirius found himself adding as an afterthought, "If I was anyone else-"

Remus prepared himself for some bad news, and was unsurprised at the person the topic was about.

"Then now," Sirius continued, "would be the point where I would say, 'Even if it's my mother, it doesn't matter. I'd love having you as a second Dad.' But as my mother's an insane bitch, I sincerely hope this isn't the case."

Though Sirius' tone suggested his statement was a joke, his eyes betrayed him as they flashed in something that looked like anger.

"Well?" Sirius asked, in a mildly urgent tone.

Surprised that Sirius even wanted clarification, Remus snickered, "Rest assured, it is most certainly not your mother."

The two of them laughed a little, contemplating the idea, "Though on the subject of mothers, you can't deny a James' mother has a great-"

"James would kill you if he even thought something like that had crossed your mind," Remus said in between peals of laughter, barely even able to hear what Sirius had said.

"And that's where you're wrong - where'd you think my little pep talk came from?" Sirius replied.

"Are you seri- never mind, of course you are," Remus went on, chuckling carefully at the idea of James' mortification.

As Sirius relived the memory, and Remus sort of invented his own idea of the situation, the two of them found themselves grinning, occasionally chuckling at odd intervals.

"My father?" Sirius asked after a moment.

"Huh?"

"What about my father?" Sirius repeated.

Remus, having barely been listening the first time, slowly ground his laughter to a halt.

"What makes you say that?" Remus asked, half wanting to laugh, and half panicking.

"Well, y'know, I thought I might as well cover all the stops," Sirius said, shrugging.

"It isn't your father, either," Remus said, outrageously repulsed by the mere suggestion.

"Good, and my brother?"

Remus rolled his eyes, "Nor him. Honestly, what is this?" Remus asked, largely in disbelief, "I can safely tell you that it is no one in the Bl-"

After his eyes had drifted away within the latter discussion, Sirius immediately looked up at Remus.

"Huh?"

Remus shook his head, "Nevermind..."

"Is it a Slytherin?" Sirius asked, in an urgent whisper.

"Not at all - you can rest peacefully."

"We'll we've covered the worst people. So who- Is it a teacher?" Sirius asked outright.

"Gosh, no," Remus clarified instantly.

"Are you sure, I mean that Professor McGonagal-"

"Before you put me off Transfiguration for life, it is not a teacher. I repeat, it is not a teacher," Remus answered, largely repulsed by the already forming images in his mind.

"Then who...?" Sirius whined, sounding largely like his animagus self.

Remus pouted in thought. Had they really covered the worst people it could be? Or would the alternative be even more horrifying to Sirius?

"It's alright, you know. Even if it is Lily. Just put me out of my misery and I'll leave you alone," Sirius promised.

That was exactly what Remus was afraid of.

"No, it isn't Lily. It never has been," Remus said, having sought out no escape - literally, as Sirius still remained poised on the edge of his bed, "It's-"

"Guys! Guess what's happening on Saturday!"

The two if them sprung sideways to each look at James as he bounded in the room.

"Surprise me," Sirius said; voice laced in humour.

"I'm going to Hogsmeade with Lily!"

As James remained stood, grinning profoundly in his pride, Remus used the chance to escape as Sirius was looking the other way.

"Great news, James, the two of you will have a great time, I'm sure," Remus said sincerely, before fixing Sirius with a pointed look and heading away to the bathroom.

"Too right," James said, oblivious to the mild tension around him, "Though Pete's snagged himself a detention, so it'll be up to you two to sort out the dung b- What's wrong with him?" James asked, interrupting himself as he noticed Remus had gone, whilst he made himself comfortable upon the edge of his own bed.

"I was just about to find out," Sirius said, with a minor trace of bitterness.

"Oh..sorry."

Sirius shook his head, "He wouldn't have told me anyway. So go on, tell me about Lily..."

As the two immersed in conversation, only with a subconscious glance of their eyes did they notice Remus head out of the room, and descend the stairs - a great sense of relief surrounding him.

It had been a close shave with Sirius, far too close. And as Remus found himself seeking out a (what he assumed to be slightly tipsy) Lily.

As he did so, he could only wonder - if he barely knew what was happening himself, how on Earth could he ever explain it to Sirius?

* * *

**Next time: Strange conversations arise between Sirius and James, whilst Remus and Lily seem to be away elsewhere in the Castile. Purely innocent?**

* * *

**I think this is considerably short, in comparison to others, but please let me know how it went. :)**

**Merry Christmas everyone!**

**Another update is likely to follow before the new year, this story is a priority, and with an iPad to work from anything is possible.**

**Thank you all for your patience - it means a lot!**


	10. Chapter 10

"Sickle for your thoughts?"

A largely distracted Remus was pulled out of his thoughts as he looked up to find that Lily had fallen into step beside him. It seemed he'd been pacing the school for quite some time, as he had somehow made his way all the way to the fifth floor - a floor he had absolutely no reason to be near.

"Huh?" He asked, still barely gathering his whereabouts.

"Honestly, you boys… You only ever seem to have one thing on your mind," as an afterthought, she hastened to add, "Or two, in your case, I should say."

Remus could only glance at her questioningly; an arched eyebrow beneath golden strands of his hair.

"Well studying, for one," she pointed out.

Though he had expected something much more interesting, Remus could not deny that studying was the thing that never ceased to occupy his mind. Though, on this particular occasion, he felt somewhat guilty for not having thought about it in the slightest.

"And…?" He prompted, expecting something like 'chocolate' or the 'moon cycle' to be the alternative.

"Sirius."

As his thoughts had been flickering between one thing or another, again, Remus wasn't entirely certain he had heard correctly - after all, with Sirius on his mind, he could have easily just misheard Lily saying 'sausages,' though why she would be saying that to him and not Peter, was beyond him.

"Yes, I did say 'Sirius,' Lily confirmed, a small smirk on her face as she glanced at Remus beside her - not unlike as though she could hear his thoughts.

Not noticing Remus freeze, and thus not continue walking, she continued on her way, explaining what she meant, "I mean, you're never apart, are you. Really? If I were you I'd sure be glad of the freedom you've got from him n- Remus, what's wrong?"

She had turned to see his opinion once again, to find that he wasn't beside her, but a fair few yards back.

Barely phased by it, Lily was soon tottering along, before she was back at Remus' side.

"Sure," Remus answered - to no one.

Lily rolled her eyes as it became apparently clear to her that upon hearing what she had had to say, Remus had pretty much shut off.

"Oi!" She declared, flickering her thumb and index finger before his eyes.

Almost instantly, Remus flinched.

"Sirius, what?" He asked instantly.

When Lily's laughter responded, Remus found himself flushing immensely.

"Lily, I…" he began, but words failed him as the girl's seemingly knowledgable glance met his pitiful gaze.

"Come on, we need to talk," she said after a short while.

Reluctantly Remus followed her, though not before he had issued a glance back at the stairs leading to Gryffindor's tower.

"Don't worry," Lily chuckled, "You'll be back to him soon."

"But he was a- I mean, who? What?" But Remus' words were only met with a little more laughter, and so he gave up trying to explain whatever it was he was trying to explain.

As the duo found their way down into the kitchens (the library would offer an escape for Remus, whilst Lily wanted his focus - not that she seemed to be getting it much).

"Right, so what's this all about?" Remus asked, pulling a stool up to the side as he dismissed the house elves' questions. It hadn't been so long ago, he realised, that he'd found himself in such a seat with Sirius himself.

"Well…" Lily began slowly, a worryingly mischievous glint in her eyes.

* * *

Back in the Marauders' dormitory, conversation had remained on Lily.

"...I mean, I didn't want to ruin it - the night had been going great, hadn't it?"

Rather than listening to James, Sirius' eyes remained fixed on the bathroom door as Remus was in there doing who-knew-what.

"Are you even listening?" James asked after a short moment.

"H-" Sirius began to answer, but movement in regards to the bathroom door handle had him panicking, and so he immediately turned his attention back to James, and struck up a conversation.

"Of course," he began out of nowhere, "We can try and include whatever we find in Hogsmeade, too."

James, with his back to the bathroom, widened his eyes in confusion, but as Sirius' gaze continued to sweep past him, he decided to wait until the dormitory door had closed before turning in on his friend.

"Right, what the hell's going on with you?" James asked before the door had been shut for even a second.

Before answering, Sirius waited - his ears pricked up as he listened for his friends' retreat.

"I think Moony has a secret girlfriend," Sirius said quietly.

"Our Moony?!" James shouted.

"Shush!" Sirius could only respond, slapping a hand across his friend's head.

"Ouch," James frowned, "There's better not be a bruise there. I need to look good for when I take Lily out."

"You've got a date?" Sirius asked, momentarily distracted.

"Haven't you been listening to a thing I've been saying?" James asked with a sigh.

"Do you want the honest answer of the kind one?" Sirius asked with a smirk.

"Forget it," James shook his head, "Tell me what's going on with Remus."

"Well, I don't know for sure. But he was just... So distracted and everything when we were talking," Sirius began.

"Like you, with me a moment ago?" James asked in amusement.

"Whatever," Sirius dismissed him.

"Anyway, what's it to us if he does?" James carried on after a while.

"He can't have!" Sirius answered, "He's Remus; no-girlfriend, study-on-Saturdays Remus."

When he received no answer, Sirius turned to look at James.

"What?" He asked, half worried at the smirk on the stag's face.

"Do you want to know what I think?" James asked carefully, trying not to appear as amused as he actually was.

"Will I regret it if I answer 'yes'?" Sirius questioned, knowing he would probably do so anyway.

"Erm…" James pretended to think about it for a moment before a light punch on the arm hurries his response, "It depends..."

"On?" Sirius prompted predictably.

"Whether you're either in denial, or if you'd agree with me."

Sirius pondered many things in the short space that followed - Remus, for one, and the number of times James had ever been right, and how long it took to actually show that; he'd always said a Lily would go out with him, six years on he was right.

The latter almost seemed to make Sirius a little edgy.

"Fine, what is it?"

James had been watching Sirius for the entire time, a d with Sirius' impatience he seemed to change his mind.

"Tell me," Sirius urged, sensing the lurch he was going to be left in.

"I-think-you're-probably-jealous."

Sirius' eyes widened, waiting for the next punch-line. When it didn't come, he could only frown at his friend.

"Are you on something?" Sirius asked him.

"I must be if I dared to admit that… Lily didn't think I would," James replied, mainly talking to himself.

"Lily?! What in the name of Merlin's pants were you talking to her about me for?! I know you want her and all, but if you're using me as stimulation, I'd rather you didn't!" Sirius argued, rather harshly.

James turned to glare at Sirius, "Why?! Would you rather it was only Remus that did that?"

There's a reason Sirius had considered it a punch line, earlier, although no coherent thought passed through his mind as his fist made to connect with James' jaw.

With the skills of a seeker, James held his friend back as he ducked into the mattress out of the way.

"You-"

But the most part of Sirius' insult was cut off as James' own clenched fist met Sirius' face.

In feminine fashion, Sirius wrenched James back by his hair before getting off the bed, and standing back to shoot daggers at James.

"You even hit like a girl, Padfoot," James noted as he sat up to straighten his shirt, and (more importantly) his hair, "Jeez, why don't you just admit it?"

"Why does it matter?" Sirius spat as he fixed his own shirt, stopping in a flurry of panic as the door swung open.

* * *

James told you what?!" Remus asked, more out of surprise than anything else.

"Well, it was just an observation. But you can see where it came from, can't you?" Lily replied softly.

It was safe to say their conversation went on much better than their counterparts at the other end of the castle.

"I do not get off at the thought of my friends. Nor do I dream about them!" Remus denied, flushing intensely at the mere thought.

"Now you're being all defensive about it," she noted.

"What do you expect?" Remus asked her with a dismayed snicker.

"You to be rational. I mean, everyone dreams about people they know - I've dreamed about the Ravenclaw quidditch team losing a game to Hufflepuff," she shrugged.

"Bet the Gryffindor team plays a part in your dreams more, though," Remus teased.

Again, Lily shrugged, "The point is, I'm not denying it. People dream - it's a matter of life."

"But it's wrong!" Remus admitted. He had fully intended to simply think that, but it seemed favour was not on his side.

"So you admit it, then? You dream about Sirius?" Lily asked him as though it were the most casual thing in the world.

Rather than answer directly, Remus asked her, "What exactly did James tell you?"

For once, a mildly smug feeling crept through Remus as he noted Lily had the sense to look somewhat uneasy. The feeling, however, soon passed as he knew what it meant.

"Why do you want to know?" She asked him.

"So I know how slowly to kill him when I get back."

Lily waited for a sign that Remus was joking.

Catching her looking, Remus said, "Gee, Lils. I'm not _serious_."

The snicker that followed, caused Lily to raise her eyebrows - a 'Sirius' joke from Remus was certainly worrying her.

"You are so far gone for him," she noted, an amused smile playing on her lips.

"Am not," Remus argued.

"Are too," Lily continued, sticking out her tongue for additional impact.

Grinning, Remus didn't answer as he let his thoughts flicker elsewhere.

"And another thing I personally noticed was that goofy smile you get when he's not around, but you're thinking about him," Lily pointed out.

"I do not have a goofy smile," Remus pouted.

"You were just thinking about him then, weren't you?" Lily asked him.

Remus needed no words to confirm it - his rosy cheeks gave him away, as did the nervous sweep of his fringe, through his fingers.

"I rest my case," Lily responded, slowly standing up from her stool.

"Lecture over, is it?" Remus joked.

"Barely the icing of the cake, Remus," Lily responded, chuckling at her friend's expression, "But for now, I'll let you get back to him."

The 'goofy smile' that followed remained with Remus for quite some time. It was as the two of them were slowly reaching the common room that Remus panicked and turned on Lily.

"James hasn't said anything, has he?!" He asked.

"About what?" Lily asked - the conversation had struck from nowhere.

"Me. To Sirius?" Remus demanded.

"Oh," lily said when she finally understood, "No, no. He's said nothing about your afflictions," she finished with a grin.

Of course, she knew exactly what he'd said. Well, to a certain extent - the collateral damage would surely be a surprise to her.

"And you're absolutely sure?" Remus whispered before they parted to their dormitories.

"You have my word," Lily responded seriously, rather than the joking manner that the two of them had been carrying out. For which, Remus was grateful.

"Thank you," he said before turning away, "Oh, and good luck in Hogsmeade," he added, smiling.

Lily nodded with a smile, before turning and heading up to her own dormitory, leaving Re,us to collect his thoughts briefly before heading to his own room.

"Why does it matter?" Remus heard as he opened the dormitory door.

As he entered, both heads immediately turned to him; Sirius looking rather flushed, and James looking somewhat eccentric - what had gone on?

"Why does **what** matter?" Remus asked them.

"If-"

"Whether it's raining when we go to Hogsmeade!" Sirius almost shouted, over James.

"If my hair ends up wet and messy," James answered afterwards, sounding a little unenthusiastic.

Distracted, thoughts of his conversation with Lily momentarily left his mind.

Momentarily, meaning they were back almost as soon as they had gone.

It was going to be an interesting night.

* * *

**Next time: The Hogsmeade outing. Where does it leave our favourite puppies?**

* * *

**That was a long one... Let me know what you thought - did it drag on, or was it alright? :) Sorry for any mistakes - auto correct is likely to blame, and I didn't have much time to check it.**

**Thank you all, and happy new year!**


	11. Chapter 11

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Lily asked Remus and Sirius, moving her hand to make it look as though she was swiping her fringe away, when in actual fact she added a smirk and a wink to Remus.

"Of course they don't mind," James answered instead, throwing an arm around her as Remus made every attempt to avoid her gaze, "They probably want us out of the way anyway - we're just providing them with an excuse."

Remus squeaked at this, glancing at Lily in question; why was James making his afflictions so obvious?

In his own discomfort, Remus didn't even dare to lok at Sirius beside him, and so he missed the equally murderous looks that he was shooting James and Lily with.

"But of course, Prongs," Sirius mocked, to hide his discomfort, "We want you out of the way so we can go back to school and take advantage of having an empty dormitory."

Sirius and James had soon found themselves back to normal save for a few bruises. Well, as normal as they ever were - as Lily kept reminding them.

She tried to constrain her barrel of laughter as Remus' cheeks flooded crimson, and choked, adding wryly, "Of course you do."

"Well, before you all start planning our wedding, can we get going?" Remus managed to ask after a brief moment, "I'd quite like to get some more chocolate before the sun sets, if you would all be so kind."

James' laughter had the decency to subside as he glanced at Remus, after his comment. The Marauders were all used to Remus' careful wording; avoiding absolutely anything that would link him to who he was, even if it meant changing familiar phrases (a notion Sirius would say only draws more attention) but the habit never ceased.

Similarly, Sirius issued Remus with a sympathetic smile, "Why don't we all just go and then we can meet up for a drink afterwards?"

Lily, mistaking Sirius' smile for something much more, smiled her own secretive smile to herself.

"Alright," she said, nodding, "If you and James can behave."

Sirius rolled his eyes. Ever since the Civil War of the Marauders (as it was commonly known, as Sirius thought it prudent to give it a name, conveniently ignoring Remus' protests that he was implying all four of them were involved in the 'war') Lily had found it funny to add odd quips here and there about the scenario.

"Remus, you'd better hold his leash tight," James added, grinning at Sirius who once again found himself glaring daggers at his friend.

"I'll do my best; see what treats I can find to bribe him," Remus muttered before realising how that could be interpreted and, the tips of his ears faintly pink, made sure to change the subject by finishing with a short, "Let's go."

* * *

As planned, the four of them went their separate ways (as Peter was left behind, taking the blame for something he still hadn't pleaded guilty to) to Hogsmeade; James and Lily heading towards the quill shop, and Remus and Sirius heading to Zonko's.

James' eyes repeatedly glanced over at the retreating figures of his two friends, in jealously more than anything else. However, content to go along with how Lily wanted the day to go, James buried his passion for mischief and tried to ignore the fact that he needed to stock up on dung bombs.

"Poor James," Sirius laughed, not sounding at all sympathetic.

Remus shrugged slightly, quite pleased to be away from the ever watchful gazes of both James and Lily.

"Well, if he wants to date her he's going to have to get used to it," he admitted.

Sirius came to a sudden stand still, as though this hadn't occurred to him before, "She can't!"

"She's Lily."

Remus could only point out, as though that explained everything. He dared a swift glance sideways at Sirius and was considerably surprised at the expression; a fair reflect on his inner-canine his eyes were all wide and puppy like, lip jutted out and cheeks sunk and hollow.

"Don't look like that, Padfoot," Remus pleaded helplessly.

Ignoring his friend, Sirius made his lip begin to wobble.

"Sirius..."

But Remus must to have gone unheard because Sirius then began to whimper like an injured dog.

Students began turning to look at where the noise was coming from, before proceeding to walk off laughing at Remus stood beside Sirius, unsure what on Earth he could do.

Then, an idea struck.

He took off, running to the shop nearest them; Zonko's.

Once inside, Remus scoured the shelves for anything that would serve as a dog toy, and came across a rather small ball. He didn't even look twice at what it was, as he picked it up, pushed through the crowd of students (followed by a series of 'ow' and 'hey' that we're shouted back at him) to the counter, before handing over seven knuts for the ball.

As he headed back outside, Remus was ashamed to see that Sirius had not lapsed his injured dog facade. With a sigh, Remus drew his fingers to his lips and blew on them.

A rather long, high whistle rung out across Hogsmeade and many heads turned away from Sirius to Remus.

"It isn't like they weren't watching us anyway," Remus muttered, throwing the ball to an oblivious Sirius as his head whipped around looking for the source of the whistle.

Noting the incoming ball, Sirius jumped up mid air to catch it in his mouth. At the sae time, a group of Slytherins turned up their noses as they exited the potions shop beside Zonko's muttering something about the insane Black family and half breeds - specifically so anyone could have heard them - though Remus overlooked it; they weren't talking about him (at least, he hoped they weren't, and his conscious seemed happy).

Uncaring, Sirius' very human teeth chomped down on the ball as he landed back down on the floor - now stood upright like a human, face contorted in disgust.

"Remus!" He shouted.

With a successful grin on his face, Remus headed back to his summoning to see what had gone on:

Where Sirius' pristine white teeth used to be, were a row of muddy coloured molars, and incisors. Sirius was spitting out the content of his mouth, the rest clutched in his palm.

"What was it?" Remus asked, sounding only mildly interested as he watched on in amusement.

"A dung ball!" Sirius spat in disgust. Noting Remus' cheerful face, he almost took another bite to prolong his friend's amusement t but decided against it immediately as the smell wafted through his nose.

As a shade of green overcame Sirius' face, Remus took him by the elbow.

"Come on, we'll get you a drink; James and Lily won't be too long," Remus concluded.

* * *

As Sirius consumed his fifth drink in the hopes of ridding his mouth of the despicable taste, ('no, Mr Black, this isn't an acceptable reason for me to give to the courts for serving you FireWhiskey') James entered the room, accompanied by a rather tired looking Lily.

Spotting Remus and Sirius, Lily made her way over looking relived, with a grinning James in tow.

"Have fun?" Remus asked her as she sat down.

"Much," James answered instead, at the same time as Lily couldn't help but ask the obvious;

"What happened to Sirius?"

Remus was left to tell them the story as Sirius took off to find a stronger drink than pumpkin juice.

"But you must have known what the ball was," James said in exasperation, "I mean, how many times have Sirius and I snuck them inside cakes and fed them to the Slyt-"

Catching Lily's eyes, James stopped.

Containing his laughter, Remus interrupted the silent battle Lily was waging, "Well, no. I had no idea, but it seemed to do the trick anyway."

"Unless I'm missing something, you've missed out a rather large piece of the jigsaw," Lily said, turning to frown back at Remus.

"Have I?"

"Well...Why on earth was Sirius acting like a dog?"

"Oh..."

Remus took a moment to consider the best explanation.

"Well," he began truthfully, "We sort of realised that his antics with James were cutting down so that James could spend more time with you."

Remus cast James an apologetic look, met with a thoughtful gaze of James'; would that work to secure Lily?

"But...why a dog?" Lily pushed, quite pleased by the first part, though trying not to show it.

"That's like asking why the sky's blue," Sirius answered, stretching over Remus to sit back in his seat, "Or why Prongs here likes you, or..." Sirius noticed Lily's lack of amusement, and hastened to add, "Or why Remus is a werewolf, and why pumpkin juice is called that, when it's all artificial."

Sirius shrugged nonchalantly.

Until he saw the faces of those around him:

Lily looked bewildered, as though she had found a piece of a jigsaw, and realised it belonged to a different puzzle.

James simply looked afraid; a common look associated with things that might damage his chances with Lily, but it was too late to do anything about them.

Remus... Remus looked beyond afraid, he looked absolutely timorous.

Sirius, meanwhile, looked simply stupefied.

"What did I- shit."

Lily looked between the faces of each of the Marauders, before saying calmly, "That explains a lot."

James turned to look at her, missing Sirius slip his hand through Remus' as it trembled upon his knee, and give it a brief comfort squeeze.

"It's okay," Sirius murmured, inaudible to anyone lacking Remus' extra auditory senses.

Lily sighed, "James, do you and Sirius want to go back to Zonko's, there may be another hundred dung bombs you didn't pick up..."

"Really?!" James cried in surprise, jumping out if his chair almost instantly, "Come on, Sirius."

But Sirius didn't move, instead he looked from Remus to Lily, and back to Remus.

"Go, it's okay," Remus whispered.

"Sirius, here boy," James called from the doorway, earning him a rather rude hand gesture.

"He said go," Lily repeated.

Fixing her with a glare, Sirius drew back his chair. Once he'd vacated his seat, he made to look as though he was bending down to pick something up, but paused to look whisper something to Lily.

Her eyes flicker to Remus' nervous stature, and she nods to whatever Sirius had said.

"If you need me, Remus, I'll be here," Sirius vowed, before reluctantly being dragged away, like a parent leaving their child at the nursery for the first time.

Lily sighed once they had gone out of sight, muttering, "Finally."

Remus almost looked as though he was going to look at her but decided against it at the last minute.

Not failing to notice this, Lily exhaled.

"First off, Remus, you can stop looking like that. It doesn't make a difference to me."

* * *

** Next time: Lily learns the truth, and Remus takes a trip down memory lane...**

* * *

**Outrageously longer than I had planned it to be, but I'm not complaining - I haven't updated for quite some time. The next update should be up much sooner, it's already in the making :)**

**I hope this was worth waiting for, and I thank you all for your patience.**

**Apologies for any autocorrect errors, too.**

**Have a good week! **


	12. Chapter 12

Remus remained silent, still not daring to look at her.

"I mean it," she vowed, her hand slowly extending out to him across the table, though she changed her mind at the last minute, and simple let it drop softly against the oak surface.

"I thought it might be like that," Remus quipped, noting the lack of contact. Though apprehensive, he tilted his head to fix her with a look, which was followed by a short bitter laugh.

Frowning, Lily exhaled and proceeded to get out of her chair and go and sit in Sirius' vacated seat. Refusing to acknowledge that she was now beside him, Remus remained looking straight ahead; mulling things over in his mind.

"I mean it," she repeated, "I'm not afraid of you, nor do I see you in any different light that I did before."

Remus interrupted, "Did James tell you to say that?"

The look on his face, as he turned to her, was not the same bitter look he had held only moments ago. Now, it seemed, he was looking more inquisitive, curious.

On the other hand, Lily was frowning, "James? No, why? He hasn't said anything to me at all about you."

Remus couldn't help the snort that followed. Undoubtably, James would have only talked about himself.

"What made you think that?" she asked him, surprise still etched in her featured.

Remus shrugged, his aubergine jacket creasing slightly at his shoulder, "It's just the same thing he said to me when he found out."

Unless he had seen it, Remus would never have believed that Lily's eyebrows could raise so high.

He briefly snorted again, this time at her expression, "I'm assuming, then, that you didn't know those were his words at all?"

"Too right I didn't…" she responded, a distant look clouding her face as she considered it.

"Looks like you two were meant to be," Remus teased after a moment, a faint smirk built on his face, though it subsided almost immediately as he sighed, remembering the situation.

Other than rolling her eyes, Lily refused to acknowledge Remus' comment, instead she asked, "Go on then; what else did they do when they found out?"

"Well," Remus began, "They sort of j-"

"Aside from not abandoning you," she interrupted with a triumphant look.

Remus, however, shook his head in disagreement, "They kind of did."

"How does that work? They were all - Sirius in particular - concerned about leaving you with me. Doesn't that mean they didn't abandon you?" Lily asked.

Remus shook his head, "If a man paints a fence and leaves it to dry, before some youths vandalise it, does that mean he didn't paint it properly the first time?"

Leaving the silence for her to figure out what he had meant, Remus took a sip of his drink.

As they sat, Lily looking quite vacant, and involved in her thoughts, Remus looked around the room. People were chatting, happily. Some were looking bored, and others sat alone, observing the scene around them, much like Remus was doing himself.

"What happened?" Lily cut into the peaceful aroma around Remus.

"Huh?" He asked, stopping his analogy of the room.

Lily sighed impatiently, "What happened when they found out?"

"Oh!" Remus nodded, "Sorry, I was daydreaming," he explained, before he launched into his tale.

* * *

Looking back, Remus realised things had been strange for a week or so before his friends confronted him on the matter.

For instance, the day before the full moon when Remus had arrived late to his Transfiguration lesson. As soon as he'd got there he had uttered his sincerest apologies, and slipped into his seat beside Sirius, who had cut short his conversation with James in order to watch Remus' approach. Professor McGonagal, on the other hand, barely batted an eyelid at his late appearance, and instead smiled at him.

James and Sirius proceeded to share a look with one another, before Sirius launched into questioning Remus about why he was let off.

On the contrary, though, that even was little in comparison to Sirius' peculiar involvement in their Astronomy lesson, in which they were talking solely about the moon and its calendar.

"What would a werewolf be doing now, do you think?" Sirius asked first.

His following question was, "Could they be studying the moon like we are, or hiding from it all the time?"

To which the reply he received was, "Mr Black, this is an Astronomy lesson, not a Care of Magical Creatures and/or Defence Against The Dark Arts. Suffice to say, a werewolf would not be hiding from the moon any night of the month; they may just be more sensitive to its pattern that you or I."

Now he looked back at it, Remus thought, he ought to have been able to guess that Sirius had known at that point. Instead, Remus had somehow managed to convince himself after that lesson, that there was nothing unusual going on with the Marauders.

Well, having said that, he did spend the rest of the day gazing at Sirius, watching him throughout the entire day. So much so that he failed to notice James watching Remus, himself, throughout the day; gathering his own evidence.

When the day of the full moon arrived, Remus set out alongside Madame Pomfrey in order to seek shelter, before he was overcome with the calendar's spectacle. As was the case each and every month, he began with checking the protective front surrounding the room in which he was held captive - heaven knew, Remus would be damned if he missed on inch of the Shack, and he was responsible for injuring anybody.

Time subsided slowly, as though dragging out Remus' anticipation surrounding his transformation, until eventually the flares of pain began to shoot through his body; coursing through his veins like electricity. Before the change became visibly clear, Remus would have sworn he caught a little movement in his periphery, however before he had the chance to appease his imagination, the wolf had overcome him.

Following the night, Remus was awoken by Madame Pomfrey in the late hours of the morning.

"You've slept in," Madame Pomfrey noted, looking quite pleased by the fact; it wasn't uncommon for Remus to awaken as soon as the transformation had ended, resulting in him being outrageously fatigued in lessons, and oblivious to much of his surroundings. This way, at least, Remus looked considerably more awake. This could only result in fewer questions, she posed. Could she have been more wrong?

Looking instantly quite alert, Remus bolted upright and looked around.

"There was something here," he wheezed, swear dripping down the side of his head, back onto his pillow.

Casting aside his worries, Madame Pomfrey shook her head, gathering the blankets, "It will have just been a mouse or some stray cat - don't get yourself worried, Remus, the gates are locked particularly securely on a Full Moon night."

Was that supposed to help Remus feel better?

Either way, the two of them had soon stood up; Madame Pomfrey barely needing to support the seemingly unscathed boy, as thoughts whizzed around in his mind.

Hours later, when Remus found himself uncommonly well enough to attend classes, he found his friends to be absent from them.

Coincidentally, it was Lily who explained, "Potter and Black didn't bother turning up. They were in the library scribbling away, last I saw of them. The other one was with them, too, but he just looked vacant."

Remus laughed, though he didn't feel much like laughing; Of course, Peter would look vacant. That part was easy to explain. The real question was what would possess Sirius and James to be in the library in the first place.

"Thanks, Lily," Remus mumbled, deciding that he could not afford to miss the class, and instead took up post at the back of the class, taking his notes and catching up on the quarter of the lesson he had missed.

Just before the end, when he had finally accepted the fact that Sirius and James would not be in the lesson at all, James came in. Not that Remus would have known, had the cloak not been thrown over him, as a hand fell onto his mouth and halting his yell.

"Ssh!" James whispered to Remus, retracting his hand so his friend was able to speak again.

"What are you doing?"

"Sirius needs to talk to you," James explained, "You might want to come now whilst everyone's out of the common room."

Remus' heart beat began to increase; what would be so important that taking Remus out of class was acceptable?

Many questions grew in Remus' mind, but having no head start he decided to sustain the uncomfortable silence in their midst.

"So, how's your aunt?" James asked, seemingly conversationally.

"Oh, she's good. Yeah, false alarm," Remus responded, having recited his response as he awaited Madame Pomfrey's assessment not many hours earlier.

"You don't seem as cut up as usual," James noted. Was it in Remus' imagination or did his friend sound quite suspicious?

"Yeah, apparently the cat's run away," Remus lied easily; not that his aunt had a cat. Wait, he didn't even have an aunt.

Shrugging in acceptance, James fell silent as the two of them entered the portrait hole together.

As soon as Remus entered, he found himself assessing the room. His eyes first fell to the chair; it had been turned around to face the fire, and Peter say cross-legged beside it.

"What's going on?" Remus asked, his head whipping around wildly as he looked for Sirius.

"That's what I intend to ask," Sirius answered him, his figure slowly revealing as he stood up from the chair.

Speechless, Remus frowned and simply accepted the seat in which James had motioned for him to sit in.

As his three friends paced around him, Remus' anxiety levels rocketed.

"So?" he asked. His patience wasn't as good as it would have been, had his friends chosen to play the game any other time of the month. Their timing sucked.

Sirius looked thoughtful, almost like a tiger assessing some prey before him, "You seem awfully touchy, Remus."

Remus grew confused, "Touchy? Of course I'm touchy. I'm in here with you three aimlessly pacing around me, and no one's explaining what I'm doing here. And why it can't wait, for that matter."

"We want to ask you now, because we know you're here - in school - now," Peter interjected, and Remus didn't fail to miss the glare thrown at him by James.

"What he means, is that if your aunt were to fall ill next month..."

"Basically, we wanted to get this out of the way before you vanish on us," Sirius interrupted James' explanation.

Heat rushed to Remus' face; they'd seen through it, they wanted to know where he'd really been, didn't they?

"No, we don't want to know where you've really been," James said allowed, almost like he could hear Remus' thoughts.

"Then wha-"

Remus' response was cut off as he was stunned into silence by Sirius' response.

"Because we already do."

In that moment, it felt a lot like ice had been poured down Remus' back as he looked pitifully back at his friends.

The silence stretched, until Peter squeaked, "Say something, Remus. Tell them they're being stupid."

"Remus..." James began uneasily.

Remus' response died down when Sirius barked a laugh, "Come on. You don't exactly have to answer - just howl and we'll understand. So long as you don't start chasing your tail or something, that would just be weird."

The hurt was evident on Remus' face almost instantly. The bitterness and hatred in Sirius' voice was clear evidence as to why Remus had chosen to kept his true identity from his friends for so long.

What was he supposed to do now?

"Sirius, don't-"

"Don't what, James? Don't tell him how many nights we've led awake trying to figure out why our friend doesn't seem to trust us? Don't tell him how long it takes to ease Peter into the room when he's terrified of being attacked each night? Don't tell him how difficult it is to even look at him, knowing the kinds of things he does; no difficult it is not to throw up at the mere sight of him? Don't-"

"Fine!" Remus shouted, his voice somehow finding its way to his mouth, "Before you call the RSPCA, I'll just go."

Despite the threat, Remus held back a couple of moments - desperately hoping his friends would say they were joking, and that they didn't want him to go. Instead-

"What's the RSPCA?" Peter asked.

* * *

"So...yeah, that was basically what happened when they found out," Remus raised his eyebrows and nodded to Lily.

"When I see Black..." she glared at the glass in front of her, as though sending Sirius her hate through it.

She was unsure why Remus' laughter soon befell their surroundings.

"What is it?"

"It wasn't like that; it isn't what you think."

"Remus, I know you've got some deep love for him and all, but how could you possibly excuse that?"

Without commenting of Lily's response, Lily went on, "It was a joke."

Lily simply looked at Remus like he was mad, so he went on to explain, "They were just saying what they could to try and get me to say something to tell the, the truth."

As understanding slowly came over Lily, she nodded once.

"And...I guess I did," Remus carried on slowly, unsure what more he could say.

Thankfully, Lily decided that she would reply at that point.

"So when did James use my words?" she asked, looking quite disgusted at the concept.

"About half an hour later, I'd walked out and Sirius had the m- well, he'd come to find me to explain it."

Though Remus had fallen silent, a coy look had befallen his features as he cast his mind back to the conversation with Sirius; the sincere vows of care and acceptable nature which encased him was overwhelming.

Broken only from his realm by Lily's soft chuckle, he barely headed her as she muttered, "I'll never understand their sense of humour, that's for sure..."

* * *

**Next time: How will Lily's understanding affect her relationship with the Marauders?**

* * *

_Wow, how do I even begin to apologise for the extent of that absence? If anyone's still actually around here and reading this, then your patience deserves an award. I scanned the last chapters to get back on track and realised exactly how long it's been since I actually updated - I mean, I'm nearly wishing you a happy Halloween, I'd only just wished you a Happy New Year._

_Really, though, it's been a long and difficult year so I thank you for not spamming my inbox with anger at my lack of updating. The kindness has definitely been something which makes we want to return here and carry on._

_I want to get this story compeleted, you deserve to know where I intended to go with it._

_Thank you once again, and I can't wait to be back here writing again._

_-The Writer_


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